Principal Engineer Software, AppSec (Chronosphere)

Palo Alto Networks; Boston (MA); Remote; USD 147,000 - 237,000; Full time

Job summary

Palo Alto Networks—Chronosphere team seeks a hands-on Security Engineer to build core security infrastructure used across the company. You will partner with infrastructure and software teams to implement tools, guardrails, and detection/response capabilities that scale while keeping developer velocity.

You will lead security decisions, conduct threat modeling, and mentor engineers, ensuring security remains a safeguard rather than a bottleneck in a rapidly evolving environment.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in security or infra-focused engineering with security ownership.
• Ability to own projects from inception to delivery independently.
• Strong problem-solving, communication, and ownership mindset.
• Empathy for developers and desire to build developer-friendly tools.
• Experience building vulnerability management systems that reduce risk.
• Led security incident response and postmortem improvements.
• 3+ years building infrastructure software in Go or Python.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and operate security tools and programs across the org.
• Collaborate to identify high-priority needs and maintain a roadmap.
• Participate in design reviews, threat modeling, and incident analysis.
• Help teams make high-quality security decisions in ambiguity.
• Set bar for security, ownership, and quality across engineering.

Skills

Security ownership

Project ownership

Problem solving

Developer empathy

Vulnerability mgmt

Incident response

Go or Python

Communication

Job description

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks®, we’re united by a shared mission—to protect our digital way of life. We thrive at the intersection of innovation and impact, solving real-world problems with cutting-edge technology and bold thinking. Here, everyone has a voice, and every idea counts. If you’re ready to do the most meaningful work of your career alongside people who are just as passionate as you are, you’re in the right place.

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks®, we’re united by a shared mission—to protect our digital way of life. We thrive at the intersection of innovation and impact, solving real-world problems with cutting-edge technology and bold thinking. Here, everyone has a voice, and every idea counts. If you’re ready to do the most meaningful work of your career alongside people who are just as passionate as you are, you’re in the right place.

Who We Are

In order to be the cybersecurity partner of choice, we must trailblaze the path and shape the future of our industry. This is something our employees work at each day and is defined by our values: Disruption, Collaboration, Execution, Integrity, and Inclusion. We weave AI into the fabric of everything we do and use it to augment the impact every individual can have. If you are passionate about solving real-world problems and ideating beside the best and the brightest, we invite you to join us!

This role is remote, but distance is no barrier to impact. Our hybrid teams collaborate across geographies to solve big problems, stay close to our customers, and grow together. You will be part of a culture that values trust, accountability, and shared success where your work truly matters.

The Team

Chronosphere, a Palo Alto Networks company, is the observability platform built for control in the modern, containerized world. Chronosphere empowers customers to focus on the data and insights that matter by reducing complexity, optimizing costs, and remediating issues faster. Chronosphere reduces data volumes and associated costs by 84% on average while saving developers thousands of hours. Recognized as a leader by major analyst firms, Chronosphere is trusted by the world’s most innovative brands, including DoorDash, Affirm, and Zillow.

Job Summary

As a hands‑on Security Engineer, you will play a crucial role within the infrastructure engineering team. Your responsibilities include defining and building core security engineering efforts to create a foundational security infrastructure used across the entire company. Success in this role requires leveraging a deep understanding of security infrastructure, strong system software development skills, and empathy for other developers. Your goal is to ensure security serves as a shared guardrail, never a bottleneck, regardless of the project.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and work with other engineering teams to operate security tools and programs across the organization, including access control & workflows, vulnerability management, and detection/response systems.
• Collaborate with other engineers and with the business to identify the highest priority needs of the organization, and maintain a roadmap to address those needs.
• Actively participate in design reviews, threat modeling, and incident analysis.
• Help teams make high‑quality security decisions, especially in ambiguous situations.
• Set the bar for security, ownership, and quality across engineering.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• 7+ years in security or infra‑focused engineering roles with meaningful security ownership.
• The ability to independently own projects from inception to delivery.
• A systematic problem‑solving approach, coupled with strong communication skills and a sense of ownership and drive.
• Empathy for the problems faced by developers, and a passion for building tools and systems that address those problems.
• Built vulnerability management systems that actually drive risk down.
• Led security incident response efforts and postmortem improvements.
• Strong interest in how things work. Curiosity and persistence is key to building the understanding needed to apply.
• A flexible, collaborative working style. We’re a small team working in a rapidly evolving space, and we’re looking for people who will help build a positive, supportive environment.
• 3+ years of experience building infrastructure software in Go or Python.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience building foundational security programs at growth‑stage companies.
• Familiarity with compliance frameworks, but a healthy skepticism of security theater.
• An outstanding ability to communicate risk with both technical and non‑technical audiences.
• Experience working with C++ or Rust.
• Proven experience championing DevSecOps within a product organization. You have lived on the security‑engineering side of the house, successfully acting as a bridge between development, operations, and security to embed a ‘secure‑by‑design’ culture without sacrificing agility.

Compensation Disclosure

The compensation offered for this position will depend on qualifications, experience, and work location. For candidates who receive an offer at the posted level, the starting base salary (for non‑sales roles) or base salary + commission target (for sales/com‑missioned roles) is expected to be the annual range listed below. The offered compensation may also include restricted stock units and a bonus. A description of our employee benefits may be found here.

$147,000.00 - $237,500.00/yr

Our Commitment

We’re trailblazers that dream big, take risks, and challenge cybersecurity’s status quo. It’s simple: we can’t accomplish our mission without diverse teams innovating, together.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with a disability. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability or special need, please contact us at [e-mail].

Palo Alto Networks is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity in our workplace, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or other legally protected characteristics.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

Is role eligible for Immigration Sponsorship?: Yes